Theme Parks

If you're thinking of visiting a Disney park in Anaheim this summer, be warned that the price is about to jump by between $7 and $150 depending on the ticket deal. The annual summer price hike for tickets to Disneyland and the Disney California Adventure Park were announced Friday and take effect Sunday. For example, a ticket for one day at either Disneyland or California Adventure had cost $80 for parkgoers who are 10 or older. The new price, starting Sunday, will be $87, up nearly 9%. The biggest increase will hit people who buy the premium annual pass that includes parking.

If you're thinking of visiting a Disney park in Anaheim this summer, be warned that the price is about to jump by between $7 and $150 depending on the ticket deal. The annual summer price hike for tickets to Disneyland and the Disney California Adventure Park were announced Friday and take effect Sunday. For example, a ticket for one day at either Disneyland or California Adventure had cost $80 for parkgoers who are 10 or older. The new price, starting Sunday, will be $87, up nearly 9%. The biggest increase will hit people who buy the premium annual pass that includes parking.

Winter always gets me thinking about going to theme parks in Southern California, even if I don't have visitors underfoot. The prospect of cooler temperatures and lighter crowds in February and March sends me looking for discounts on the high cost of tickets. I found that the Southern California CityPass -- with a flat rate for admission to Disneyland, Disney California Adventure, Universal Studios Hollywood and SeaWorld San Diego -- offers good savings, even when compared with incentives for SoCal residents.

The concrete Indian on the forklift struck a precarious pose as he moved through a crowd of rummagers scouting the remains of Bud Hurlbut's workshop in Buena Park . From behind the wheel, Lonnie Lloyd waved everyone aside as he guided the 6-foot, 6-inch statue into a U-Haul van. Its new owners shimmied it against a wall. Toys, props, tools and memorabilia at Hurlbut Amusement Co. moved fast during the recent three-day sale, and Lloyd tried not to be sentimental.

Walt Disney Co. is looking to bring some Marvel muscle to Disney theme parks. Disney Chief Executive Bob Iger told shareholders attending the annual meeting Tuesday in Kansas City, Mo., that the company has done preliminary design work that will one day lead to Marvel superheroes appearing in the theme parks along with Disney's other familiar characters. "We haven't announced anything yet," Iger said. "But we're working on some concepts. " When Disney acquired Marvel Entertainment Inc. for $4.3 billion in 2009, the Burbank entertainment company talked about incorporating the comic book giant's library of 5,000 characters throughout its various businesses.

Imagine chowing down on pizza and washing it down with a Slurpee, followed by a deep-fried Snickers and some funnel cake covered in crispy bacon and maple cream. Now imagine finishing up the day by jumping on more than a dozen high-speed roller coasters. For teenagers, this may sound like the makings of a great day. For most adults, it's a recipe for extreme nausea. Six Flags Magic Mountain in Valencia is launching into this year's peak spring and summer seasons with several new menu items for guests, including Slurpees, the blended ice drinks that -- until now -- were sold exclusively at 7-Eleven convenient stores.

The list of potential buyers for the Dodgers — should Major League Baseball or a divorce court force a sale — features all the usual suspects. Forbes 400 types who have amassed personal fortunes large enough to afford every sports fan's dream. That includes men such as Eli Broad and Tom Gores, who do not have much experience when it comes to owning a team. The scenario sounds familiar to Robert Kraft, who purchased the New England Patriots in 1994 after years of cheering from the stands.

Movie stars, television actors, pop singers, fashion models and stand-up comedians love to get scared just like you and me. > Photos: Screaming with the stars at Halloween theme park events Halloween events at theme parks around the world offer celebrities the perfect opportunity to get their haunt on while blending in with big crowds under the cover of darkness. The ghoulish monsters, haunted mazes and holiday decorations draw some of the biggest celebrity names: Selena Gomez, Justin Bieber, Hilary Duff, Demi Lovato, Lindsay Lohan, Leonardo DiCaprio, Lady Gaga and Paris Hilton.

The Los Angeles Times Funland blog covers news, trends, issues and changes at major amusement and theme parks as well as the latest information on new rides, attractions, shows, parades and Halloween events. Funland categories: Theme Parks | Disneyland | Disney California Adventure | Disney World | Universal Studios | Six Flags | Knott's Berry Farm | New Rides & Attractions | Roller Coasters | Photo Galleries | Top 10s | Most Popular Stories | Celebrities | Halloween | Wizarding World of Harry Potter Contact Los Angeles Times theme park blogger Brady MacDonald at brady (dot)

Halloween stretches for a month or longer at Southern California's theme parks, with haunts ranging from the mild to the extreme. Here's a guide: Event: Halloween Horror Nights Location: Universal Studios Hollywood Details: Six haunted mazes based on the films "The Thing," "The Wolfman," "Hostel" and "House of 1000 Corpses," shock rocker Alice Cooper and the La Llorona folk legend. Dates: Sat.-Sun., Oct. 14-16, 20-23, 27-31. Hours: 7 p.m. until 1 or 2 a.m. Cost: $37-$62 Info: http://www.halloweenhorrornights.com Event: Halloween Haunt Location: Knott's Berry Farm, Buena Park Details: 13 mazes including Terror of London, Virus Z and Endgames: Warriors of the Apocalypse.

The first official Angry Birds Land will open Saturday at Sarkanniemi Adventure Park in Finland with rides and games themed to the popular smart phone app. PHOTOS: Angry Birds Land at European theme park Located about two hours north of Helsinki, Sarkanniemi has partnered with Finnish-based gamemaker Rovio to bring the virtual world of battling birds and pigs into the fantasy world of a theme park. With more than 500 million downloads, the iPhone and Android cellphone game challenges players to launch birds at towering pig fortresses in hopes of destroying the defensive structures and recovering pilfered eggs.

Environmental groups are accusing Six Flags Magic Mountain of polluting the Santa Clara River with huge volumes of contaminated water and allowing trash with its logos to spill into the Southern California waterway and toward the ocean. The allegations were made in a letter sent to the Valencia theme park last week by a coalition of environmental groups, whose investigators say they found alarming levels of pollutants in water sloshing out of the facility's storm water outfalls into the nearby waterway during rainstorms.

Imagine chowing down on pizza and washing it down with a Slurpee, followed by a deep-fried Snickers and some funnel cake covered in crispy bacon and maple cream. Now imagine finishing up the day by jumping on more than a dozen high-speed roller coasters. For teenagers, this may sound like the makings of a great day. For most adults, it's a recipe for extreme nausea. Six Flags Magic Mountain in Valencia is launching into this year's peak spring and summer seasons with several new menu items for guests, including Slurpees, the blended ice drinks that -- until now -- were sold exclusively at 7-Eleven convenient stores.

Real Madrid plans to open a $1 billion soccer-centric theme park on a United Arab Emirates man-made island in January 2015 that celebrates the history, triumphs and hubris of the richest football club in the world. PHOTOS: Real Madrid Resort Island in the Middle East The 100-acre Real Madrid Resort Island  will feature a roller coaster that extends out over the water, a SeaWorld-style dolphin show and a hologram soccer movie inside a climate-controlled theme park.

Walt Disney Co. is looking to bring some Marvel muscle to Disney theme parks. Disney Chief Executive Bob Iger told shareholders attending the annual meeting Tuesday in Kansas City, Mo., that the company has done preliminary design work that will one day lead to Marvel superheroes appearing in the theme parks along with Disney's other familiar characters. "We haven't announced anything yet," Iger said. "But we're working on some concepts. " When Disney acquired Marvel Entertainment Inc. for $4.3 billion in 2009, the Burbank entertainment company talked about incorporating the comic book giant's library of 5,000 characters throughout its various businesses.

What do you get when you cross a Renaissance fair with a Las Vegas spectacle and a few hundred Roman gladiators, swashbuckling musketeers and marauding Vikings? The one-of-a-kind Puy du Fou historical theme park in the French countryside. PHOTOS: Puy du Fou historical theme park in France After three decades of entertaining audiences with live-action chariot races, sword fights and epic battles, France's Puy du Fou will be recognized on March 17 as a "classic" theme park by the Themed Entertainment Assn . during an awards ceremony at the Disneyland Hotel in Anaheim.

The coming year will bring major new attractions at Disney parks on both coasts, big roller-coaster additions at Six Flags and Busch Gardens and a throng of towering thrill rides at a handful of parks. The headliner for 2011 is the $100-million Voyage of the Little Mermaid, coming to Disney California Adventure. The elaborate, dark ride will take visitors on a family-friendly musical underwater journey based on "The Little Mermaid" animated movie. A similar version of the ride will open in 2012 at the Magic Kingdom in Florida.

Theme parks are being flooded with applications from job seekers, as unemployed mortgage agents, sales clerks and construction workers who can't find work elsewhere seek temporary positions that often pay little more than minimum wage. A job fair at Six Flags Magic Mountain in Valencia last weekend drew 1,600 people -- in the rain. Universal Studios Hollywood took in more than 1,100 job applications on just one day last month. Disneyland in Anaheim and Knott's Berry Farm in Buena Park have received so many job applications that they put off plans to hold jobs fairs this year.

Disney aficionados can get an extra dose of their favorite theme parks when Disneyland in Anaheim and the Magic Kingdom Park in Orlando, Fla., open for 24 hours straight on Feb. 29, otherwise known as Leap Day. The event, dubbed "One More Disney Day," will mark the first time in Disney's history that both parks will operate for 24 hours at the same time. It won't be the first time that Disneyland has stayed open for 24 hours. Each year, in May and June, Disneyland stays open throughout the night on selected dates for graduating high school seniors.

Winter always gets me thinking about going to theme parks in Southern California, even if I don't have visitors underfoot. The prospect of cooler temperatures and lighter crowds in February and March sends me looking for discounts on the high cost of tickets. I found that the Southern California CityPass -- with a flat rate for admission to Disneyland, Disney California Adventure, Universal Studios Hollywood and SeaWorld San Diego -- offers good savings, even when compared with incentives for SoCal residents.